The vitamin B-complex requirements of several insects

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Abstract
The larvae of 5 beetles, Tribolium confusum, Lasioderma serri-corne, Sitodrepa panicea, Silvanus surinamensis and Ptinus tectus were grown on synthetic diet containing all the chemically identified members of the vit. B complex in pure form. For Tribolium and Ptinus, thiamin, riboflavin, nicotinic acid, pyridoxin and pantothenic acid are essential; choline chloride is certainly, and inositol and p-aminobenzoic acid are possibly of importance as growth factors. Lasioderma, Sitodrepa and Silvanus do not seem to require some of the vits. which are indispensable for Tribolium and Ptinus. This difference is due to the presence, in the former, of intracellular symbionts which synthesize some of the vits. If the diet contains aqueous yeast extract as a source of the water soluble B-vits., the insects require, in addition, for optimal growth a substance contained in the "water insoluble" residue of yeast which proved to be biotin. The optimal biotin requirements of Tribolium are approx. 0.1 [mu]g./g- of the dry diet, and the threshold of action is between 0.0003 and 0.006 [mu]g./g.